With half of precincts reporting, Jensen has just over 57 percent of the vote.

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For the first time in 21 years, Grand Prairie will elect a new mayor.

With early results in, Ron Jensen has a narrow lead over Mark Hepworth. The men previously served together on the city council before resigning to run for mayor.

Jensen, 62, was first elected to the council in 2002, emerged as the favorite among the Grand Prairie insiders, having received endorsements from council members Tony Shotwell and Jim Swafford as well as, Charles England who has served as mayor since 1992 but did not seek reelection.

He is president and CEO of Control Products, a Grand Prairie producer of aircraft lighting.

Hepworth, 58, a stockbroker and vice president of the investment firm Aspen Equity Partners, was first elected to the council in 2008.

Mark Hepworth

On the city council, four candidates each ran for the District 1 and 6 council seats vacated by Hepworth and Jensen. Jorja Clemson, 66, president of Store Service Inc., has a wide lead for the one-year term in District 1.

Clemson is the daughter of Grand Prairie “matriarch” Ruthe Jackson, 92, who serves as Deputy Mayor Pro Tem and has held an at large position on the council since 1985. This is the first time a mother-daughter pair will serve on the council. Jackson is not expected to seek reelection when her term ends in 2014.

In District 6, a two-year term, Jeff Wooldridge, 35, an automotive repair manager has a wide lead over the three other candidates.

Council members Jim Swafford and Richard Fregoe ran unopposed.

Voters are also overwhelmingly voting to renew the quarter cent sales tax for street maintenance.

In Grand Prairie ISD, incumbent board trustees Terry Brooks and Chester McCrary are leading their challengers.

Naming a public building after a living politician is one thing. But naming that public building after a serving politician is another.

Twenty-one-year Grand Prairie mayor Charles England’s office in city hall sits next to the Charles V. England Public Safety Training Complex. The Ruthe Jackson Center, named for the ten term councilwoman, is a few miles away. And after the city council approved two more name changes last week, Grand Prairie residents will be able to work out in the Tony Shotwell Life Center and hang out in the Jim SwaffordClubhouse after a round of golf on the city’s Tangle Ridge course.

Council voted to rename the rec center/library after city councilman Tony Shotwell

This practice of naming property and landmarks has drawn some scrutiny from the public — most recently after two council members voted to approve renaming buildings after themselves.

“From the point of view of an ordinary person, this kind of has the taint, if it happens too often…,of being unusual, and maybe inappropriate,” Grand Prairie resident Brian Crowe said at the April 16 council meeting.

A more suitable choice might be “a financial benefactor who has contributed significantly to the cost of that space,” he said. “Historic families who have shed blood or sweat and tears to develop the community in the past and should be recognized for those efforts.”

The Bowles Life Center, which will now be named after Shotwell, was named for the Bowles family, who were among the area’s first settlers.

“Sometimes I think it’s appropriate to honor somebody who’s spent a lifetime in public service,” he said, recognizing councilwoman Jackson, who is 92. “But at some point in time you have to draw the line at what’s appropriate and what’s not appropriate.”

Cole Humphreys also expressed his reservations about the name changes.

“Are there not other individuals who maybe deserve it more?” he asked before the vote. “Why don’t we release this to the voters? Why don’t we get the voters involved?”

Even sports heroes have to wait five years until they can be inducted into the hall of fame, he pointed out. But “here in Grand Prairie, that doesn’t seem to be the case.”

Yet this phenomenon is by no means unique to Grand Prairie. Earlier this year, Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio, introduced a bill that would prohibit naming public property “after a former elected official before the fifth anniversary of the date the former elected official last held elective office.”

At Tuesday’s meeting, England said he was not very surprised by the pushback.

“It’s election season,” he said.

“I don’t think you have to be dead 10 years or five years before you can name something after somebody,” he said. “They’re well deserved.”

Councilman Greg Giessner, who’s in his first term, said he had previously expressed concern on the practice, but in the case of Swafford and Shotwell, he said, “they’ve fought tooth and nail like spirited bulldogs to get a lot of things done and pushed through.”

Council passed the resolutions 6-0, with five members and the mayor voting.

“This is real humbling,” said Shotwell, who said the renaming is “probably the pinnacle of my life.”

And on the question of whether it would be more appropriate to wait a few years, Shotwell said, “It’s kind of like putting flowers on your grandmother’s grave when you could’ve handed the flowers to your grandmother while she was still here.”

“I think the humility is in allowing the people who respect you and care about what you’ve done to have the opportunity to show that,” he said.

A pregnant white buffalo that arrived at a gas station near downtown Dallas last week will be leaving soon.

Several Native Americans had criticized Fuel City’s display of the rare animal as insensitive to what they consider a sacred symbol of hope and rebirth.

“It’s important to educate the public about our way of life,” said Yolanda Blue Horse of Denton, who is a part of the Rosebud Sioux tribe. “Sacred things like the white buffalo are not to be used as a side show or carnival act,” she said “It needs to be respected.”

Last week, the buffalo, named Lone Star, joined several young donkeys and longhorn cattle in the eight fenced-in acres that surround the gas station on South Riverfront Boulevard, between Interstates 30 and 35E.

“I brought this buffalo to Dallas for people to enjoy,” Fuel City owner John Benda said. “I was not trying to profit from the animal.

“Everything was fine. The buffalo was really happy there and has a nice disposition. I didn’t want it to become negative, but I felt like the situation couldn’t be rescued.”
On Sunday, after Blue Horse heard about Lone Star on the news, she went to see the animal.

“I felt very sorry for her,” she said. “She symbolizes what has been done to the Native American people. She was ripped away from her herd. She needs to be around her own kind, and she doesn’t have that opportunity right now.”

Once Benda spoke with Blue Horse on Monday, he offered to return it to the Wild Side Ranch in South Texas, from where he had leased the animal.

But Blue Horse was not satisfied with that arrangement. Benda then agreed Lone Star should be moved to a private sanctuary, the location of which will be determined by Blue Horse and Eric Reed, a Dallas attorney who is part Choctaw.

“We’ll make the best decision for what’s best for the buffalo,” Blue Horse said.
Benda purchased the buffalo Wednesday, and she’ll remain at Fuel City until her next destination is determined.

Benda said he’s disappointed but thinks he is doing the right thing.
“I really enjoyed having it here,” he said. “There’s no script written for my situation.”

Competition is building in Grand Prairie after a second council member has resigned to get his name on the ballot for mayor.

Ron Jensen and Mark Hepworth will face off in the May election for the seat currently held by Mayor Charles England for the past 21 years. England recently announced he would not run again. With just over two weeks left to file for a place on the general election ballot, it’s still possible others could enter.

Jensen made his decision to run three years ago when there was some question whether England would seek reelection. “I would have never run against England,” he said.

Jensen said Hepworth visited his office a few months ago to announce his intentions.

Hepworth, a stock broker and vice president of the Dallas investment firm, Aspen Equity Partners Inc, was first elected to the council district in north Grand Prairie in 2008.

Jensen is President and CEO of Control Products Corporation, a Grand Prairie-based producer of aircraft lighting, and has represented the southern part of the city since 2002.

The special election filing deadline to fill the vacancies left by Jensen in District 6 and Hepworth in District 1 is March 11.

Three have filed for District 1 to date, including Jorja Clemson, the daughter of Grand Prairie “matriarch” Ruthe Jackson, who serves as Deputy Mayor Pro Tem and has held an “at large” position on the council since 1985. It’s possible that the mother-daughter pair will serve on the council together for a year. Jackson is not expected to seek reelection when her term ends in 2014.

Barry Anderson, executive director of the nonprofit Arlington New Beginnings, which provides support and housing for the elderly with low and moderate income has also filed for District 1. As has Max Coleman, who owns Coleman South, which assists the trucking industry.

Two have filed for District 6, Warren Landrum and Jeff Wooldridge. Landrum has spent his career working in IT. He is an author and currently serves on the Grand Prairie Library Board. Wooldridge owns a used car dealership and is active in the local rotary club.

As of today, incumbents Jim Swafford in District 2 and Richard Fregoe in District 4 haven’t drawn challengers.

At Tuesday’s State of the City address, Mayor Charles England announced he would not seek re-election for the office he has held the past 21 years.

Filing for the local ballot began Wednesday and Mayor pro tem Ron Jensen is the first to submit his name for the office. The City Charter requires sitting council members resign to run for mayor. Jensen’s resignation is effective immediately.

Jensen has lived in Grand Prairie since 1963 and has represented council District 6 in the southern part of the city since 2002. He is President and CEO of Control Products Corporation, a Grand Prairie-based producer of aircraft lighting.

Council member Mark Hepworth, who represents District 1 in the North end of the city, is also expected to file for the mayor’s seat.

Incumbent council member Jim Swafford has filed for District 2, which he has represented for seven of his eight terms on the council.

Richard Fregoe’s District 4 council seat is also up for re-election this year, though no one has yet to file.

Around 500 homeless men, women and children are at the Omni Dallas Hotel today for a day of pampering and a night in a warm bed.

The eighth annual Celebrate Jesus event is put on by SoupMobile, a nonprofit mobile soup kitchen whose mission is to feed and shelter Dallas’ homeless.

After exiting charter buses, the guests walked down a long red carpet as the band from Mesquite’s John Horn High School played the theme song from Rocky.

Hundreds of homeless were fed through the program at the Omni Dallas this afternoon. (David Woo/Staff Photographer)

Close to 2,500 volunteers have worked to make the event run smoothly. Many of them lined the red carpet, giving hugs and handshakes and wishing the guests a merry Christmas. Snow machines filled the air with flurries.

When they stepped in from the cold, each guest was given a card including their name, room number and clothing size. Backpacks with a shirt and pants were handed to each guest before they made their way up to their rooms.

Carol Hawkins, who goes by “Mama,” has been homeless since September. The 58-year-old has been staying on a mat at the Bridge each night, but today her luxurious room looks out over the downtown skyline.

“I’m overwhelmed,” she said. “We’re blessed to be here, and I thank God.”

Close to 50 people, including several children, gathered at Dealey Plaza Sunday evening to mourn the lives lost in the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.

“We’re all coming out to heal,” said Aceil Rashid, of Irving, who helped organize the vigil with a group of friends.

As people began trickling in around 5:30 PM, 28 candles were lit, “each signifying a soul that was lost,” said Rashid.

She read aloud the names of the deceased. Abdullah Shawky, another of the vigil’s organizers, thanked everyone for coming and spoke about the need to be “more human” and to “learn to love instead of hate.”

Another speaker, who is training to become a teacher spoke about the importance of appreciating our teachers today. Others gave impromptu words from the heart, mourning the loss of innocent lives.

“Instead of creating a debate, we need to discuss what actually happened,” Rashid said the after the vigil. ”It’s important for people to connect and and start talking. We don’t know when this could happen again.”

The group has helped organize another candlelight vigil on December 20 at Herman Clark Stadium in Fort Worth at 7pm.